East Germany, officially the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic (GDR; German:
Deutsche Demokratische Republik pronounced [ˈdɔʏtʃə
demoˈkʀaːtɪʃə ʀepuˈbliːk], DDR), was a communist state[5][6]
in Central Europe, during the
Cold WarCold War period. It described itself as
a socialist "workers' and peasants' state."[6] From 1949 to 1990, it
administered the portion of
GermanyGermany that had been occupied by Soviet
forces at the end of World War II—the
Soviet Occupation ZoneSoviet Occupation Zone of the
PotsdamPotsdam Agreement, bounded on the east by the Oder–Neisse line. The
Soviet zone surrounded West Berlin, but did not include it; as a
result,
West BerlinWest Berlin remained outside the jurisdiction of the GDR.
The German Democratic
RepublicRepublic was established in the Soviet Zone,
while the Federal
RepublicRepublic was established in the three western zones.
East
GermanyGermany was a satellite state of the Soviet Union.[7] Soviet
occupation authorities began transferring administrative
responsibility to German communist leaders in 1948, and the GDR began
to function as a state on 7 October 1949. However, Soviet forces
remained in the country throughout the Cold War. Until 1989, the GDR
was governed by the Socialist Unity Party (SED), though other parties
nominally participated in its alliance organisation, the National
Front of Democratic Germany.[8] The SED made the teaching of
Marxism–LeninismMarxism–Leninism and the
Russian languageRussian language compulsory in schools.[9]
The economy was centrally planned, and increasingly state-owned.[10]
Prices of housing, basic goods and services were set by central
government planners, rather than rising and falling through supply and
demand; and were heavily subsidised. Although the GDR had to pay
substantial war reparations to the USSR, it became the most successful
economy in the Eastern Bloc. Emigration to the West was a significant
problem – as many of the emigrants were well-educated young people,
it further weakened the state economically. The government fortified
its western borders and, in 1961, built the
BerlinBerlin Wall. Many people
attempting to flee were killed by border guards or booby traps, such
as landmines.[11]
In 1989, numerous social, economic and political forces in the GDR and
abroad led to the fall of the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall and the establishment of a
government committed to liberalization. The following year open
elections were held,[12] and international negotiations led to the
signing of the Final Settlement treaty on the status and borders of
Germany. The GDR dissolved itself and
GermanyGermany was reunified on 3
October 1990, becoming a fully sovereign state again. Several of the
GDR's leaders, notably its last communist leader Egon Krenz, were
prosecuted in reunified
GermanyGermany for crimes committed during the Cold
War.
Geographically, the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic bordered the Baltic Sea
to the north; the Polish People's
RepublicRepublic to the east; Czechoslovakia
to the southeast and West
GermanyGermany to the southwest and west.
Internally, the GDR also bordered the Soviet sector of Allied-occupied
BerlinBerlin known as
East BerlinEast Berlin which was also administered as the state's
de facto capital. It also bordered the three sectors occupied by the
United States,
United KingdomUnited Kingdom and
FranceFrance known collectively as West
Berlin. The three sectors occupied by the Western nations were sealed
off from the rest of the GDR by the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall from its construction
in 1961 until it was brought down in 1989.

6.1 National People's Army
6.2 Border troops
6.3 Volkspolizei
6.4 Stasi
6.5 Combat groups of the working class
6.6 Conscientious objection
6.7
United StatesUnited States as primary threat
6.8 Support of Third World socialist countries
6.9 Soviet military occupation

7 Economy

7.1 Consumption and jobs

8 Religion

8.1 State atheism
8.2 Protestantism
8.3 Roman Catholicism

9 Culture

9.1 Music
9.2 Theatre
9.3 Cinema
9.4 Sport
9.5 Television and radio

10 Industry

10.1 Telecommunications

11 Official and public holidays
12 Legacy
13 Ostalgie
14 See also
15 Notes
16 References and bibliography

16.1 Historiography and memory
16.2 In German

17 External links

Naming conventions[edit]
The official name was Deutsche Demokratische Republik (German
Democratic Republic), usually abbreviated to DDR. Both terms were used
in East Germany, with increasing usage of the abbreviated form,
especially since East
GermanyGermany considered West Germans and West
Berliners to be foreigners following the promulgation of its second
constitution in 1968. West Germans, the western media and statesmen
initially avoided the official name and its abbreviation, instead
using terms like Ostzone (Eastern Zone),[13] Sowjetische
Besatzungszone (Soviet Occupation Zone; often abbreviated to SBZ), and
sogenannte DDR[14] (or "so-called GDR").[15]
The centre of political power in
East BerlinEast Berlin was referred to as
Pankow. (The seat of command of the Soviet forces in East
GermanyGermany was
referred to as Karlshorst.[13]) Over time, however, the abbreviation
DDR was also increasingly used colloquially by West Germans and West
German media.[16]
The term Westdeutschland (West Germany), when used by West Germans was
almost always a reference to the geographic region of Western Germany
and not to the area within the boundaries of the Federal
RepublicRepublic of
Germany. However, this use was not always consistent; for example,
West Berliners frequently used the term Westdeutschland to denote the
Federal Republic.[17] Before World War II, Ostdeutschland (eastern
Germany) was used to describe all the territories east of the Elbe
(East Elbia), as reflected in the works of sociologist
Max WeberMax Weber and
political theorist Carl Schmitt.[18][19][20][21][22]
History[edit]
Main article: History of East Germany
Further information: History of Germany

Explaining the internal impact of the GDR government from the
perspective of German history in the long term, historian Gerhard A.
Ritter (2002) has argued that the
East GermanEast German state was defined by two
dominant forces –
Soviet communismSoviet communism on the one hand, and German
traditions filtered through the interwar experiences of German
communists on the other. It was constrained by the powerful example of
the increasingly prosperous West, to which East Germans compared their
state. The changes made by the communists were most apparent in ending
capitalism and transforming industry and agriculture, and in the
thrust of the educational system and the media. On the other hand,
there was relatively little change made in the historically
independent domains of the sciences, the engineering professions, the
ProtestantProtestant churches, and in many bourgeois lifestyles. Social policy,
says Ritter, became a critical legitimization tool in the last decades
and mixed socialist and traditional elements about equally.[23]
Origins[edit]
At the
Yalta ConferenceYalta Conference during World War II, the Allies (the U.S., the
UK and the Soviet Union) agreed on dividing a defeated Nazi Germany
into occupation zones,[24] and on dividing Berlin, the German capital,
among the Allied powers as well. Initially this meant the construction
of three zones of occupation, i.e., American, British, and Soviet.
Later, a French zone was carved out of the American and British zones.
1949 establishment[edit]

The ruling communist party, known as the Socialist Unity Party of
GermanyGermany (SED), was formed in April 1946 from the merger between the
Communist Party of
GermanyGermany (KPD) and the Social Democratic Party of
GermanyGermany (SPD) by mandate of Joseph Stalin. The two former parties were
notorious rivals when they were active before the Nazis consolidated
all power and criminalised their agitation. The unification of the two
parties was symbolic[citation needed] of the new friendship of German
socialists in defeating their common enemy; however, the communists,
who held a majority, had virtually total control over policy.[25] The
SED was the ruling party for the entire duration of the East German
state. It had close ties with the USSR, which maintained military
forces in East
GermanyGermany until its dissolution in 1991 (the Russian
Federation continued to maintain forces in what had been East Germany
until 1994), with the stated purpose of countering
NATONATO bases in West
Germany. Historians debate whether the decision to form a separate
country was initiated by the
USSRUSSR or by the SED.[26]
As West
GermanyGermany was reorganised and gained independence from its
occupiers, the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic was established in East
GermanyGermany in 1949. The creation of the two states solidified the 1945
division of Germany.[27] On 10 March 1952, (in what would become known
as the "Stalin Note") Stalin put forth a proposal to reunify Germany
with a policy of neutrality, with no conditions on economic policies
and with guarantees for "the rights of man and basic freedoms,
including freedom of speech, press, religious persuasion, political
conviction, and assembly" and free activity of democratic parties and
organizations.[28] This was turned down; reunification was not a
priority for the leadership of West Germany, and the
NATONATO powers
declined the proposal, asserting that
GermanyGermany should be able to join
NATONATO and that such a negotiation with the
Soviet UnionSoviet Union would be seen
as a capitulation. There have been several debates about whether a
real chance for reunification had been missed in 1952.
In 1949 the Soviets turned control of East
GermanyGermany over to the
Socialist Unity Party, headed by
Wilhelm PieckWilhelm Pieck (1876–1960), who
became president of the GDR and held the office until his death, while
most executive authority was assumed by SED General Secretary Walter
Ulbricht. Socialist leader
Otto GrotewohlOtto Grotewohl (1894–1964) became prime
minister until his death.[29]
The government of East
GermanyGermany denounced West German failures in
accomplishing denazification and renounced ties to the Nazi past,
imprisoning many former Nazis and preventing them from holding
government positions. The SED set a primary goal of ridding East
GermanyGermany of all traces of the fascist regime. The SED party platform
claimed to support democratic elections and the protection of
individual liberties in building up socialism.[30]
Zones of occupation[edit]
Further information: Allied-occupied Germany
In the Yalta and
PotsdamPotsdam conferences, the Allies established their
joint military occupation and administration of
GermanyGermany via the Allied
Control Council (ACC), a four-power (US, UK, USSR, France) military
government effective until the restoration of German sovereignty. In
eastern Germany, the
Soviet Occupation ZoneSoviet Occupation Zone (SBZ – Sowjetische
Besatzungszone) comprised the five states (Länder) of
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and
Thuringia. Disagreements over the policies to be followed in the
occupied zones quickly led to a breakdown in cooperation between the
four powers, and the Soviets administered their zone without regard to
the policies implemented in the other zones. The Soviets withdrew from
the ACC in 1948; subsequently as the other three zones were
increasingly unified and granted self-government, the Soviet
administration instituted a separate socialist government in its zone.

Yet, seven years after the Allies’
Potsdam AgreementPotsdam Agreement to a unified
Germany, the
USSRUSSR via the
Stalin NoteStalin Note (10 March 1952) proposed German
reunification and superpower disengagement from Central Europe, which
the three Western Allies (the United States, France, the United
Kingdom) rejected. Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, a Communist proponent
of reunification, died in early March 1953. Similarly, Lavrenty Beria,
the First Deputy Prime Minister of the USSR, pursued German
reunification, but he was removed from power that same year before he
could act on the matter. His successor, Nikita Khrushchev, rejected
reunification as equivalent to returning East
GermanyGermany for annexation
to the West; hence reunification went unconsidered until 1989.

East
GermanyGermany considered
East BerlinEast Berlin to be its capital, and the Soviet
Union and the rest of the
Eastern BlocEastern Bloc diplomatically recognized East
BerlinBerlin as the capital. However, the Western Allies disputed this
recognition, considering the entire city of
BerlinBerlin to be occupied
territory governed by the Allied Control Council. According to
Margarete Feinstein, East Berlin's status as the capital was largely
unrecognized by the West and most Third World countries.[31] In
practice, the ACC’s authority was rendered moot by the Cold War, and
East Berlin's status as occupied territory largely became a legal
fiction, and the former Soviet sector became fully integrated into the
GDR.
The deepening
Cold WarCold War conflict between the Western Powers and the
Soviet UnionSoviet Union over the unresolved status of
West BerlinWest Berlin led to the
Berlin BlockadeBerlin Blockade (24 June 1948 – 12 May 1949). The Soviet army
initiated the blockade by halting all Allied rail, road, and water
traffic to and from West Berlin. The Allies countered the Soviets with
the
Berlin AirliftBerlin Airlift (1948–49) of food, fuel, and supplies to West
Berlin.[32]
Partition[edit]

On 21 April 1946, the Communist Party of
GermanyGermany (Kommunistische
Partei Deutschlands – KPD) and the part of the Social
Democratic Party of
GermanyGermany (Sozialdemokratische Partei
Deutschlands – SPD) in the Soviet zone merged to form the
Socialist Unity Party of
GermanyGermany (SED – Sozialistische
Einheitspartei Deutschlands), which then won the elections of 1946,
held under the oversight of the Soviet army. Being a
Marxist–Leninist political party, the SED's government nationalised
infrastructure and industrial plants.

In 1948, the
German Economic CommissionGerman Economic Commission (Deutsche
Wirtschaftskomission—DWK) under its chairman
Heinrich RauHeinrich Rau assumed
administrative authority in the Soviet occupation zone, thus becoming
the predecessor of an
East GermanEast German government.[33][34]
On 7 October 1949, the SED established the Deutsche Demokratische
Republik (German Democratic Republic – GDR), based on a
socialist political constitution establishing its control of the
anti-fascist National Front of the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic (NF,
Nationale Front der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik), an omnibus
alliance of every party and mass organisation in East Germany. The NF
was established to stand for election to the
VolkskammerVolkskammer (People's
Chamber), the
East GermanEast German parliament. The first and only President of
the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic was Wilhelm Pieck. However, after 1950,
political power in East
GermanyGermany was held by the First Secretary of the
SED, Walter Ulbricht.[35]

SED First Secretary, Walter Ulbricht, 1950

On 16 June 1953, workers constructing the new
StalinalleeStalinallee boulevard in
East Berlin, according to The Sixteen Principles of Urban Design,
rioted against a 10% production quota increase. Initially a labour
protest, it soon included the general populace, and on 17 June similar
protests occurred throughout the GDR, with more than a million people
striking in some 700 cities and towns. Fearing anti-communist
counter-revolution on 18 June 1953, the government of the GDR enlisted
the Soviet Occupation Forces to aid the police in ending the riot;
some fifty people were killed and 10,000 were jailed.[36][37] (See
Uprising of 1953 in East Germany.)
The German war reparations owed to the
USSRUSSR impoverished the Soviet
Zone of Occupation and severely weakened the
East GermanEast German economy. In
the 1945–46 period, the Soviets confiscated and transported to the
USSRUSSR approximately 33% of the industrial plant and by the early 1950s
had extracted some US$10 billion in reparations in agricultural
and industrial products.[38] The poverty of East
GermanyGermany induced by
reparations provoked the
RepublikfluchtRepublikflucht ("desertion from the
republic") to West Germany, further weakening the GDR's economy.
Western economic opportunities induced a brain drain. In response, the
GDR closed the Inner German Border, and on the night of 12 August
1961,
East GermanEast German soldiers began erecting the
BerlinBerlin Wall.[39]

In 1971, Soviet leader
Leonid BrezhnevLeonid Brezhnev had Ulbricht removed; Erich
HoneckerHonecker replaced him. While the Ulbricht government had experimented
with liberal reforms, the
HoneckerHonecker government reversed them. The new
government introduced a new
East German ConstitutionEast German Constitution which defined the
German Democratic
RepublicRepublic as a "republic of workers and
peasants".[40]
Initially, East
GermanyGermany claimed an exclusive mandate for all of
Germany, a claim supported by most of the Communist bloc. It claimed
that West
GermanyGermany was an illegally constituted
NATONATO puppet state.
However, from the 1960s onward, East
GermanyGermany began recognizing itself
as a separate country from West Germany, and shared the legacy of the
united German state of 1871–1945. This was formalized in 1974, when
the reunification clause was removed from the revised East German
constitution. West Germany, in contrast, maintained that it was the
only legitimate government of Germany. From 1949 to the early 1970s,
West
GermanyGermany maintained that East
GermanyGermany was an illegally constituted
state. It argued that the GDR was a Soviet puppet state, and
frequently referred to it as the "Soviet occupation zone". This
position was shared by West Germany's allies as well until 1973. East
GermanyGermany was recognized primarily by Communist countries and the Arab
bloc, along with some "scattered sympathizers".[41] According to the
Hallstein DoctrineHallstein Doctrine (1955), West
GermanyGermany also did not establish
(formal) diplomatic ties with any country – except the
USSR – that recognized
East GermanEast German sovereignty.

But in the early 1970s, the
OstpolitikOstpolitik ("Eastern Policy") of "Change
Through Rapprochement" of the pragmatic government of FRG Chancellor
Willy Brandt, established normal diplomatic relations with the East
Bloc states. This policy saw the Treaty of Moscow (August 1970), the
Treaty of Warsaw (December 1970), the Four Power Agreement on Berlin
(September 1971), the Transit Agreement (May 1972), and the Basic
Treaty (December 1972), which relinquished any claims to an exclusive
mandate over
GermanyGermany as a whole and established normal relations
between the Germanys. Both countries were admitted into the United
Nations on 18 September 1973. This also increased the number of
countries recognizing East
GermanyGermany to 55, including the US, UK and
France, though these three still refused to recognize
East BerlinEast Berlin as
the capital, and insisted on a specific provision in the UN resolution
accepting the two Germanys into the UN to that effect.[41] Following
the
OstpolitikOstpolitik the West German view was that East
GermanyGermany was a de
facto government within a single German nation and a de jure state
organisation of parts of
GermanyGermany outside the Federal Republic. The
Federal
RepublicRepublic continued to maintain that it could not within its
own structures recognise the GDR de jure as a sovereign state under
international law; but it fully acknowledged that, within the
structures of international law, the GDR was an independent sovereign
state. By distinction, West
GermanyGermany then viewed itself as being within
its own boundaries, not only the de facto and de jure government, but
also the sole de jure legitimate representative of a dormant "Germany
as whole".[42] The two Germanys relinquished any claim to represent
the other internationally; which they acknowledged as necessarily
implying a mutual recognition of each other as both capable of
representing their own populations de jure in participating in
international bodies and agreements, such as the
United NationsUnited Nations and
the Helsinki Final Act.
This assessment of the Basic Treaty was confirmed in a decision of the
Federal Constitutional CourtFederal Constitutional Court in 1973;[43]

"... the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic is in the international-law sense
a State and as such a subject of international law. This finding is
independent of recognition in international law of the German
Democratic
RepublicRepublic by the Federal
RepublicRepublic of Germany. Such
recognition has not only never been formally pronounced by the Federal
RepublicRepublic of
GermanyGermany but on the contrary repeatedly explicitly
rejected. If the conduct of the Federal
RepublicRepublic of
GermanyGermany towards
the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic is assessed in the light of its
détente policy, in particular the conclusion of the Treaty as de
facto recognition, then it can only be understood as de facto
recognition of a special kind. The special feature of this Treaty is
that while it is a bilateral Treaty between two States, to which the
rules of international law apply and which like any other
international treaty possesses validity, it is between two States that
are parts of a still existing, albeit incapable of action as not being
reorganized, comprehensive State of the Whole of
GermanyGermany with a single
body politic."[44]

Travel between the GDR and Poland, Czechoslovakia,
HungaryHungary was
visa-free since 1972.[45]
GDR identity[edit]

From the beginning, the newly formed GDR tried to establish its own
separate identity.[46] Because of the imperial and military legacy of
Prussia, the SED repudiated continuity between
PrussiaPrussia and the GDR.
The SED destroyed a number of symbolic relics of the former Prussian
aristocracy: the Junker manor houses were torn down, the Berliner
Stadtschloß was razed, and the equestrian statue of Frederick the
Great was removed from East Berlin. Instead the SED focused on the
progressive heritage of German history, including Thomas Müntzer's
role in the
German Peasants' WarGerman Peasants' War and the role played by the heroes of
the class struggle during Prussia's industrialization.
Especially after the Ninth Party Congress in 1976, East
GermanyGermany upheld
historical reformers such as Karl Freiherr vom Stein, Karl August von
Hardenberg, Wilhelm von Humboldt, and
Gerhard von ScharnhorstGerhard von Scharnhorst as
examples and role models.[47]

Die WendeDie Wende (German Reunification)[edit]
Main articles:
Die WendeDie Wende and German reunification
In 1989, following widespread public anger over the faking of results
of local government elections, many citizens applied for exit visas or
left the country contrary to GDR laws. In August 1989
HungaryHungary removed
its border restrictions and unsealed its border, and more than 13,000
people left East
GermanyGermany by crossing the border via Czechoslovakia
into
HungaryHungary and then on to
AustriaAustria and West Germany.[48] Many others
demonstrated against the ruling party, especially in the city of
Leipzig. Kurt Masur, the conductor of the
LeipzigLeipzig Gewandhaus
Orchestra, led local negotiations with the government and held town
meetings in the concert hall.[49] The demonstrations eventually led
Erich HoneckerErich Honecker to resign in October, and he was replaced by a slightly
more moderate communist, Egon Krenz.[50]
On 9 November 1989, a few sections of the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall were opened,
resulting in thousands of East Germans crossing freely into West
BerlinBerlin and West
GermanyGermany for the first time in nearly 30 years. Krenz
resigned a few days later, and the SED abandoned power shortly
afterward. Although there were some limited attempts to create a
permanent democratic East Germany, this did not come to pass.
East
GermanyGermany held its last elections in March 1990. The winner was a
coalition headed by the
East GermanEast German branch of West Germany's Christian
Democratic Union, which advocated speedy reunification. Negotiations
(2+4 Talks) were held involving the two German states and the former
Allied Powers which led to agreement on the conditions for German
unification. By a two-thirds vote in the
VolkskammerVolkskammer on 23 August
1990, the GDR declared its accession to the Federal Republic. The five
original
East GermanEast German states that had been abolished in the 1952
redistricting were recreated.[50] On 3 October 1990, the five states
officially joined the Federal
RepublicRepublic of Germany, while East and West
BerlinBerlin united as a third city-state (in the same manner as
BremenBremen and
Hamburg). On 1 July a currency union preceded the political union: the
"Ostmark" was abolished, and the Western German "Deutsche Mark" became
common currency.
Although the Volkskammer's declaration of accession to the Federal
RepublicRepublic had initiated the process of reunification; the act of
reunification itself (with its many specific terms, conditions and
qualifications; some of which involved amendments to the West German
Basic Law) was achieved constitutionally by the subsequent Unification
Treaty of 31 August 1990; that is through a binding agreement between
the former GDR and the Federal
RepublicRepublic now recognising each another
as separate sovereign states in international law.[51] This treaty was
then voted into effect prior to the agreed date for Unification by
both the
VolkskammerVolkskammer and the
BundestagBundestag by the constitutionally
required two-thirds majorities; effecting on the one hand, the
extinction of the GDR, and on the other, the agreed amendments to the
Basic Law of the Federal Republic.
The great economic and socio-political inequalities between the former
Germanies required government subsidy for the full integration of East
GermanyGermany to the Federal German Republic. Because of the resulting
deindustrialisation in the former East Germany, the causes of the
failure of this integration continue to be debated. Some western
commentators claim that the depressed eastern economy is a natural
aftereffect of a demonstrably inefficient socialist economy. But many
East GermanEast German critics contend that the shock-therapy style of
privatization, the artificially high rate of exchange offered for the
Ostmark, and the speed with which the entire process was implemented
did not leave room for
East GermanEast German enterprises to adapt.[52]
Politics[edit]
Main article: Politics of East Germany

There were four periods in
East GermanEast German political history.[53] These
included: 1949–61, which saw the building of socialism; 1961–1970
after the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall closed off escape was a period of stability and
consolidation; 1971–85 was termed the
HoneckerHonecker Era, and saw closer
ties with West Germany; and 1985–89 saw the decline and extinction
of East Germany.
Organization[edit]
Further information: Constitution of East Germany
The ruling political party in East
GermanyGermany was the Sozialistische
Einheitspartei Deutschlands (Socialist Unity Party of Germany, SED).
It was created in 1946 through the Soviet-directed merger of the
Communist Party of
GermanyGermany (KPD) and the Social Democratic Party of
GermanyGermany (SPD) in the Soviet controlled zone. However, the SED quickly
transformed into a full-fledged
Communist partyCommunist party as the more
independent-minded Social Democrats were pushed out.[47]
The
Potsdam AgreementPotsdam Agreement committed the Soviets to supporting a democratic
form of government in Germany, though the Soviets' understanding of
"democracy" was radically different from that of the West. As in other
Soviet-bloc countries, non-communist political parties were allowed.
Nevertheless, every political party in the GDR was forced to join the
National Front of Democratic Germany, a broad coalition of parties and
mass political organisations, including:

Christlich-Demokratische Union Deutschlands (Christian Democratic
Union of Germany, CDU), which merged with the West German CDU after
reunification.
Demokratische Bauernpartei Deutschlands (Democratic Farmers' Party of
Germany, DBD). The party merged with the West German CDU after
reunification.
Liberal-Demokratische Partei Deutschlands (Liberal Democratic Party of
Germany, LDPD), merged with the West German FDP after reunification.
Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands (National Democratic Party
of Germany, NDPD), merged with the West German FDP after
reunification.[47]

The member parties were almost completely subservient to the SED, and
had to accept its "leading role" as a condition of their existence.
However, the parties did have representation in the
VolkskammerVolkskammer and
received some posts in the government.
The
VolkskammerVolkskammer also included representatives from the mass
organisations like the
Free German YouthFree German Youth (Freie Deutsche Jugend or
FDJ), or the Free German Trade Union Federation. There was also a
Democratic Women's Federation of Germany, with seats in the
Volkskammer.
Important non-parliamentary mass organisations in
East GermanEast German society
included the German Gymnastics and Sports Association (Deutscher Turn-
und Sportbund or DTSB), and
People's SolidarityPeople's Solidarity (Volkssolidarität),
an organisation for the elderly. Another society of note was the
Society for German-Soviet Friendship.
After the fall of Communism, the SED was renamed the "Party of
Democratic Socialism" (PDS) which continued for a decade after
reunification before merging with the West German WASG to form the
Left Party (Die Linke). The Left Party continues to be a political
force in many parts of Germany, albeit drastically less powerful than
the SED.[55]
Population[edit]

Historical population

Year
Pop.
±%

1950
18,388,000
—

1960
17,188,000
−6.5%

1970
17,068,000
−0.7%

1980
16,740,000
−1.9%

1990
16,028,000
−4.3%

Source: DUSTATIS

The
East GermanEast German population declined by three million people throughout
its forty-one year history, from 19 million in 1948 to
16 million in 1990; of the 1948 population, some 4 million
were deported from the lands east of the Oder-Neisse line.[56] This
was a stark contrast from Poland, which increased during that time;
from 24 million in 1950 (a little more than East Germany) to
38 million (more than twice of East Germany's population). This
was primarily a result of emigration—about one quarter of East
Germans left the country before the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall was completed in
1961,[57] and after that time, East
GermanyGermany had very low birth
rates,[58] except for a recovery in the 1980s when the birth rate in
East
GermanyGermany was considerably higher than in West Germany.[59]
Major cities[edit]
(1988 populations)

Administrative map: The districts of the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic in
1952.

Main article: Administrative divisions of East Germany
Until 1952, East
GermanyGermany comprised the capital,
East BerlinEast Berlin (though
legally, it was not fully part of the GDR's territory), and the five
German states of
Mecklenburg-VorpommernMecklenburg-Vorpommern (in 1947 renamed Mecklenburg),
Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Saxony, their post-war
territorial demarcations approximating the pre-war German demarcations
of the Middle German Länder (states) and Provinzen (provinces of
Prussia). The western parts of two provinces, Pomerania and Lower
Silesia, the remainder of which were annexed by Poland, remained in
the GDR and were attached to Mecklenburg and Saxony, respectively.
The
East German Administrative Reform of 1952East German Administrative Reform of 1952 established 14 Bezirke
(districts) and de facto disestablished the five Länder. The new
Bezirke, named after their district centres, were as follows: (i)
Rostock, (ii) Neubrandenburg, and (iii)
SchwerinSchwerin created from the Land
(state) of Mecklenburg; (iv) Potsdam, (v) Frankfurt (Oder), and (vii)
CottbusCottbus from Brandenburg; (vi)
MagdeburgMagdeburg and (viii) Halle from
Saxony-Anhalt; (ix) Leipzig, (xi) Dresden, and (xii) Karl-Marx-Stadt
(
ChemnitzChemnitz until 1953 and again from 1990) from Saxony; and (x) Erfurt,
(xiii) Gera, and (xiv)
SuhlSuhl from Thuringia.
East BerlinEast Berlin was made the country’s 15th
Bezirk in 1961 but retained
special legal status until 1968, when the residents approved the new
(draft) constitution. Despite the city as a whole being legally under
the control of the Allied Control Council, and diplomatic objections
of the Allied governments, the GDR administered the
Bezirk of Berlin
as part of its territory.

Uni-Riese (University Giant) in 1982. Built in 1972, it was once part
of the Karl-Marx-University and is Leipzig's tallest building.

The government of East
GermanyGermany had control over a large number of
military and paramilitary organisations through various ministries.
Chief among these was the Ministry of National Defence. Because of
East Germany's proximity to the West during the
Cold WarCold War (1945–91),
its military forces were among the most advanced of the Warsaw Pact.
Defining what was a military force and what was not is a matter of
some dispute.
National People's Army[edit]
Main article: National People's Army
The Nationale Volksarmee (NVA) was the largest military organisation
in East Germany. It was formed in 1956 from the Kasernierte
VolkspolizeiVolkspolizei (Barracked People's Police), the military units of the
regular police (Volkspolizei), when East
GermanyGermany joined the Warsaw
Pact. From its creation, it was controlled by the Ministry of National
Defence (East Germany). It was an all volunteer force until an
eighteen-month conscription period was introduced in 1962. It was
considered one of the most professional and best prepared military
forces in the world. The NVA consisted of the following branches:

Border troops[edit]
Main article: Border Troops of the German Democratic Republic
The border troops of the Eastern sector were originally organised as a
police force, the Deutsche Grenzpolizei, similar to the
BundesgrenzschutzBundesgrenzschutz in West Germany. It was controlled by the Ministry
of the Interior. Following the remilitarisation of East
GermanyGermany in
1956, the Deutsche Grenzpolizei was transformed into a military force
in 1961, modeled after the Soviet Border Troops, and transferred to
the Ministry of National Defense, as part of the National People's
Army. In 1973, it was separated from the NVA, but it remained under
the same ministry. It was an all-volunteer force. At its peak, it
numbered approximately 47,000 men.
Volkspolizei[edit]
Main article: Bereitschaftspolizei § In the former German
Democratic Republic
After the NVA was separated from the
VolkspolizeiVolkspolizei in 1956, the
Ministry of the Interior maintained its own public order barracked
reserve, known as the Volkspolizei-Bereitschaften (VPB). These units
were, like the Kasernierte Volkspolizei, equipped as motorised
infantry, and they numbered between 12,000 and 15,000 men.
Stasi[edit]
Main article: Stasi
The Ministry of State Security (Stasi) included the Felix Dzerzhinsky
Guards Regiment, which was mainly involved with facilities security
and plain clothes events security. They were the only part of the
feared
StasiStasi that was visible to the public, and so were very
unpopular within the population. The
StasiStasi numbered around 90,000 men,
the Guards Regiment around 11,000-12,000 men.
Combat groups of the working class[edit]
The
Kampfgruppen der ArbeiterklasseKampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse (combat groups of the working
class) numbered around 400,000 for much of their existence, and were
organised around factories and neighbourhoods. The KdA was the
political-military instrument of the SED; it was essentially a "party
Army". All KdA directives and decisions were made by the ZK's
Politbüro. They received their training from the
VolkspolizeiVolkspolizei and the
Ministry of the Interior. Membership was voluntary, but SED members
were required to join as part of their membership obligation.
Conscientious objection[edit]
Main article: Conscientious objection in East Germany
Every man was required to serve eighteen months of compulsory military
service; for the medically unqualified and conscientious objector,
there were the
Baueinheiten (construction units), established in 1964,
two years after the introduction of conscription, in response to
political pressure by the national
LutheranLutheranProtestantProtestant Church upon the
GDR’s government. In the 1970s,
East GermanEast German leaders acknowledged
that former construction soldiers were at a disadvantage when they
rejoined the civilian sphere.
United StatesUnited States as primary threat[edit]

The
East GermanEast German state promoted an anti-imperialist line that was
reflected in all its media and all the schools.[60] This line followed
Lenin's theory of imperialism as the highest and last stage of
capitalism, and Dimitrov's theory of fascism as the dictatorship of
the most reactionary elements of financial capitalism. Popular
reaction to these measures was mixed, and Western media penetrated the
country both through cross-border television and radio broadcasts from
West
GermanyGermany and from the American propaganda network Radio Free
Europe. Dissidents, particularly professionals, sometimes fled to West
Germany, which was relatively easy before the construction of the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall in 1961.[61][62]
Support of Third World socialist countries[edit]

After receiving wider international diplomatic recognition in
1972–73, the DDR began active cooperation with Third World socialist
governments and national liberation movements. While the
USSRUSSR was in
control of the overall strategy and Cuban armed forces were involved
in the actual combat (mostly in the People's
RepublicRepublic of
AngolaAngola and
socialist Ethiopia), the DDR provided experts for military hardware
maintenance and personnel training, and oversaw creation of secret
security agencies based on its own
StasiStasi model.
Already in the 1960s contacts were established with Angola’s MPLA,
Mozambique’s
FRELIMOFRELIMO and the
PAIGCPAIGC in Guinea Bissau and Cape Verde.
In the 1970s official cooperation was established with other
self-proclaimed socialist governments and people’s republics:
People's
RepublicRepublic of the Congo, People's Democratic
RepublicRepublic of Yemen,
Somali Democratic Republic, Libya, and the People's
RepublicRepublic of Benin.
The first military agreement was signed in 1973 with the People's
RepublicRepublic of the Congo. In 1979 friendship treaties were signed with
Angola,
MozambiqueMozambique and Ethiopia.
It was estimated that altogether, 2000–4000 DDR military and
security experts were dispatched to Africa. In addition,
representatives from African and Arab countries and liberation
movements underwent military training in the DDR.[63]
Soviet military occupation[edit]
Main article: Group of Soviet Forces in Germany
Economy[edit]
Main article: Economy of the German Democratic Republic

The
East GermanEast German economy began poorly because of the devastation caused
by the
Second WorldSecond World War; the loss of so many young soldiers, the
disruption of business and transportation, and finally reparations
owed to the USSR. The
Red ArmyRed Army dismantled and transported to Russia
the infrastructure and industrial plants of the Soviet Zone of
Occupation. By the early 1950s, the reparations were paid in
agricultural and industrial products; and Lower Silesia, with its coal
mines and Szczecin, an important natural port, were given to
PolandPoland by
the decision of Stalin.[38]
The socialist centrally planned economy of the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic was like that of the USSR. In 1950, the GDR joined the
COMECONCOMECON trade bloc. In 1985, collective (state) enterprises earned
96.7% of the net national income. To ensure stable prices for goods
and services, the state paid 80% of basic supply costs. The estimated
1984 per capita income was $9,800 ($22,600 in 2015 dollars). In 1976,
the average annual growth of the GDP was approximately five percent.
This made
East GermanEast German economy the richest in all of the Soviet Bloc
until 1990 after the fall of
CommunismCommunism in the country.[64]
Notable
East GermanEast German exports were photographic cameras, under the
PrakticaPraktica brand; automobiles under the Trabant, Wartburg, and the IFA
brands; hunting rifles, sextants, typewriters and wristwatches.
Until the 1960s, East Germans endured shortages of basic foodstuffs
such as sugar and coffee. East Germans with friends or relatives in
the West (or with any access to a hard currency) and the necessary
StaatsbankStaatsbank foreign currency account could afford Western products and
export-quality
East GermanEast German products via Intershop. Consumer goods also
were available, by post, from the Danish Jauerfood, and Genex
companies.
The government used money and prices as political devices, providing
highly subsidised prices for a wide range of basic goods and services,
in what was known as "the second pay packet".[65] At the production
level, artificial prices made for a system of semi-barter and resource
hoarding. For the consumer, it led to the substitution of GDR money
with time, barter, and hard currencies. Ironically, the socialist
economy became steadily more dependent on financial infusions from
hard-currency loans from West Germany. East Germans, meanwhile, came
to see their soft currency as worthless relative to the Deutsche Mark
(DM).[66]
Consumption and jobs[edit]
Many western commentators have maintained that loyalty to the SED was
a primary criterion for getting a good job, and that professionalism
was secondary to political criteria in personnel recruitment and
development.[67]
No worker could be sacked, unless for serious misconduct or
incompetence; even in such cases, alternative work would be
offered.[citation needed] The GDR had no system of unemployment
benefit because the concept of unemployment did not exist.[citation
needed]
With a very low birth rate and a high rate of exodus, East
GermanyGermany was
losing workers. As the goal of socialism is the elimination of
capitalist economics, the GDR strove to reduce wealth disparity
between individuals through the elimination of private property,
businesses and stores. While enforcement of this ideal led to a more
economically even society, it prompted many with economic ambition or
those who did not agree with its enforcement to escape—typically
those with higher education: doctors, scientists, engineers, and
skilled workers. This growing loss of skilled personnel was intended
to be curtailed with the building of the wall.[68]
Beginning in 1963 with a series of secret international agreements,
East
GermanyGermany recruited workers from Poland, Hungary, Cuba, Albania,
Mozambique,
AngolaAngola and North Vietnam. They numbered more than 100,000
by 1989. Many, such as future politician Zeca Schall (who emigrated
from
AngolaAngola in 1988 as a contract worker) stayed in
GermanyGermany after the
Wende.[69]
Religion[edit]
Main articles: Christianity in East Germany, Persecution of Christians
in the Eastern Bloc, and Irreligion in Germany

Religion in East Germany, 1950

Religion

Percent

Protestant

85%

Roman Catholic

10%

Unaffiliated

5%

Religion in East Germany, 1989

Religion

Percent

Protestant

25%

Roman Catholic

5%

Unaffiliated

70%

Religion became contested ground in the GDR, with the governing
Communists promoting state atheism, although some people remained
loyal to Christian communities.[70] In 1957 the State authorities
established a State Secretariat for Church Affairs to handle the
government's contact with churches and with religious groups;[citation
needed] the SED remained officially atheist.[71]
In 1950, 85% of the GDR citizens were Protestants, while 10% were
Roman Catholics. In 1961, the renowned philosophical theologian, Paul
Tillich, claimed that the
ProtestantProtestant population in East
GermanyGermany had
the most admirable Church in Protestantism, because the Communists
there had not been able to win a spiritual victory over them.[72] By
1989, membership in the Christian churches dropped significantly.
ProtestantsProtestants constituted 25% of the population,
Roman CatholicsRoman Catholics 5%. The
share of people who considered themselves non-religious rose from 5%
in 1950 to 70% in 1989.
State atheism[edit]
Further information:
State atheismState atheism and Irreligion in Germany
When it first came to power, the
Communist partyCommunist party asserted the
compatibility of Christianity and
MarxismMarxism and sought Christian
participation in the building of socialism. At first the promotion of
atheism received little official attention. In the mid-1950s, as the
Cold WarCold War heated up, atheism became a topic of major interest for the
state, in both domestic and foreign contexts. University chairs and
departments devoted to the study of scientific atheism were founded
and much literature (scholarly and popular) on the subject was
produced.[by whom?] This activity subsided in the late 1960s amid
perceptions that it had started to become counterproductive. Official
and scholarly attention to atheism renewed beginning in 1973, though
this time with more emphasis on scholarship and on the training of
cadres than on propaganda. Throughout, the attention paid to atheism
in East
GermanyGermany was never intended to jeopardise the cooperation that
was desired from those East Germans who were religious.[73]
Protestantism[edit]
Main article: de:Bund der Evangelischen Kirchen in der DDR

A 1980 meeting between representatives of the BEK and Erich Honecker

East Germany, historically, was majority
ProtestantProtestant (primarily
Lutheran) from the early stages of the
ProtestantProtestant Reformation onwards.
In 1948, freed from the influence of the Nazi-oriented German
Christians, Lutheran, Reformed and United churches from most parts of
GermanyGermany came together as the Evangelical Church in
GermanyGermany (EKD) at
the Conference of
EisenachEisenach (Kirchenversammlung von Eisenach).
In 1969 the regional
ProtestantProtestant churches in East
GermanyGermany and East
Berlin[74] broke away from the EKD and formed the Federation of
ProtestantProtestant Churches in the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic (German: Bund
der Evangelischen Kirchen in der DDR, BEK), in 1970 also joined by the
Moravian Herrnhuter Brüdergemeine. In June 1991, following the German
reunification, the BEK churches again merged with the EKD ones.
Between 1956 and 1971 the leadership of the
East GermanEast German Lutheran
churches gradually changed its relations with the state from hostility
to cooperation.[75] From the founding of the GDR in 1949, the
Socialist Unity Party sought to weaken the influence of the church on
the rising generation. The church adopted an attitude of confrontation
and distance toward the state. Around 1956 this began to develop into
a more neutral stance accommodating conditional loyalty. The
government was no longer regarded as illegitimate; instead, the church
leaders started viewing the authorities as installed by God and,
therefore, deserving of obedience by Christians. But on matters where
the state demanded something which the churches felt was not in
accordance with the will of God, the churches reserved their right to
say no. There were both structural and intentional causes behind this
development. Structural causes included the hardening of Cold War
tensions in Europe in the mid-1950s, which made it clear that the East
German state was not temporary. The loss of church members also made
it clear to the leaders of the church that they had to come into some
kind of dialogue with the state. The intentions behind the change of
attitude varied from a traditional liberal
LutheranLutheran acceptance of
secular power to a positive attitude toward socialist ideas.[76]
Manfred StolpeManfred Stolpe became a lawyer for the
BrandenburgBrandenburgProtestantProtestant Church
in 1959 before taking up a position at church headquarters in Berlin.
In 1969 he helped found the Bund der Evangelischen Kirchen in der DDR
(BEK), where he negotiated with the government while at the same time
working within the institutions of this
ProtestantProtestant body. He won the
regional elections for the
BrandenburgBrandenburg state assembly at the head of
the SPD list in 1990. Stolpe remained in the
BrandenburgBrandenburg government
until he joined the federal government in 2002.
Apart from the
ProtestantProtestant state churches (German: Landeskirchen)
united in the EKD/BEK and the
Roman Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic Church there was a number
of smaller
ProtestantProtestant bodies, including
ProtestantProtestant Free Churches
(German: Evangelische Freikirchen) united in the Federation of the
Free
ProtestantProtestant Churches in the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic and the
Federation of the Free
ProtestantProtestant Churches in Germany, as well as the
Free
LutheranLutheran Church, the Old
LutheranLutheran Church and Federation of the
Reformed Churches in the German Democratic Republic. The Moravian
Church also had its presence as the Herrnhuter Brüdergemeine. There
were also other
ProtestantsProtestants such as Methodists, Adventists, Mennonites
and Quakers.
Roman Catholicism[edit]
See also: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Berlin

The smaller
Roman Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic Church in eastern
GermanyGermany had a fully
functioning episcopal hierarchy that was in full accord with the
Vatican. During the early postwar years, tensions were high. The
Catholic Church as a whole (and particularly the bishops) resisted
both the
East GermanEast German state and Marxist ideology. The state allowed the
bishops to lodge protests, which they did on issues such as
abortion.[76]
After 1945 the Church did fairly well in integrating Catholic exiles
from lands to the east (which mostly became part of Poland) and in
adjusting its institutional structures to meet the needs of a church
within an officially atheist society. This meant an increasingly
hierarchical church structure, whereas in the area of religious
education, press, and youth organisations, a system of temporary staff
was developed, one that took into account the special situation of
Caritas, a Catholic charity organisation. By 1950, therefore, there
existed a Catholic subsociety that was well adjusted to prevailing
specific conditions and capable of maintaining Catholic
identity.[77][page needed]
With a generational change in the episcopacy taking place in the early
1980s, the state hoped for better relations with the new bishops, but
the new bishops instead began holding unauthorised mass meetings,
promoting international ties in discussions with theologians abroad,
and hosting ecumenical conferences. The new bishops became less
politically oriented and more involved in pastoral care and attention
to spiritual concerns. The government responded by limiting
international contacts for bishops.[78][need quotation to verify]
List of apostolic administrators:

Erfurt-Meiningen
Görlitz
Magdeburg
Schwerin

Culture[edit]
Main article: Culture of East Germany

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help
improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2015) (Learn
how and when to remove this template message)

East Germany's culture was strongly influenced by communist thought
and was marked by an attempt to define itself in opposition to the
west, particularly West
GermanyGermany and the United States. Critics of the
East GermanEast German state have claimed that the state's commitment to
CommunismCommunism was a hollow and cynical tool[who?], Machiavellian in
nature, but this assertion has been challenged by studies[which?] that
have found that the
East GermanEast German leadership was genuinely committed to
the advance of scientific knowledge, economic development, and social
progress. However, Pence and Betts argue, the majority of East Germans
over time increasingly regarded the state's ideals to be hollow,
though there was also a substantial number of East Germans who
regarded their culture as having a healthier, more authentic mentality
than that of West Germany.[79]
GDR culture and politics were limited by the harsh censorship.[80]
Music[edit]
The
PuhdysPuhdys and Karat were some of the most popular mainstream bands in
East Germany. Like most mainstream acts, they appeared in popular
youth magazines such as Neues Leben and Magazin. Other popular rock
bands were Wir, Dean Reed, City, Silly and Pankow. Most of these
artists recorded on the state-owned AMIGA label.[citation needed]
Schlager, which was very popular in the west, also gained a foothold
early on in East Germany, and numerous musicians, such as Gerd
Christian, Uwe Jensen, and Hartmut Schulze-Gerlach gained national
fame. From 1962 to 1976, an international schlager festival was held
in Rostock, garnering participants from between 18 and 22 countries
each year.[81] The city of
DresdenDresden held a similar international
festival for schlager musicians from 1971 until shortly before
reunification.[82] There was a national schlager contest hosted yearly
in
MagdeburgMagdeburg from 1966 to 1971 as well.[83]
Bands and singers from other Communist countries were popular, e.g.
Czerwone GitaryCzerwone Gitary from
PolandPoland known as the Rote Gitarren.[84][85] Czech
Karel Gott, the Golden Voice from Prague, was beloved in both German
states.[86] Hungarian band Omega performed in both German states, and
Yugoslavian band
Korni GrupaKorni Grupa toured East
GermanyGermany in the 1970s.[87][88]
West German television and radio could be received in many parts of
the East. The Western influence led to the formation of more
"underground" groups with a decisively western-oriented sound. A few
of these bands were Die Skeptiker, Die Art and Feeling B.
Additionally, hip hop culture reached the ears of the East German
youth. With videos such as
Beat StreetBeat Street and Wild Style, young East
Germans were able to develop a hip hop culture of their own.[89] East
Germans accepted hip hop as more than just a music form. The entire
street culture surrounding rap entered the region and became an outlet
for oppressed youth.[90]
The government of the GDR was invested in both promoting the tradition
of German classical music, and in supporting composers to write new
works in that tradition. Notable
East GermanEast German composers include Hanns
Eisler, Paul Dessau, Ernst Hermann Meyer, Rudolf Wagner-Régeny, and
Kurt Schwaen.[citation needed]
The birthplace of
Johann Sebastian BachJohann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), Eisenach, was
rendered as a museum about him, featuring more than three hundred
instruments, which, in 1980, received some 70,000 visitors. In
Leipzig, the Bach archive contains his compositions and correspondence
and recordings of his music.[91]
Governmental support of classical music maintained some fifty symphony
orchestras, such as
GewandhausorchesterGewandhausorchester and
ThomanerchorThomanerchor in Leipzig;
Sächsische Staatskapelle in Dresden; and Berliner Sinfonie Orchester
and
Staatsoper Unter den LindenStaatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin.[citation needed] Kurt Masur
was their prominent conductor.[92]
See also: Jazz in Germany
Theatre[edit]

East GermanEast German theatre was originally dominated by Bertolt Brecht, who
brought back many artists out of exile and reopened the Theater am
Schiffbauerdamm with his Berliner Ensemble.[93] Alternatively, other
influences tried to establish a "Working Class Theatre", played for
the working class by the working class.[citation needed]
After Brecht's death, conflicts began to arise between his family
(around Helene Weigel) and other artists about Brecht's heritage.
Heinz Kahlau, Slatan Dudow, Erwin Geschonneck, Erwin Strittmatter,
Peter Hacks, Benno Besson, Peter Palitzsch and
Ekkehard SchallEkkehard Schall were
considered to be among Bertolt Brecht's scholars and
followers.[citation needed]
In the 1950s the Swiss director
Benno BessonBenno Besson with the Deutsches
Theater successfully toured Europe and Asia including Japan with The
Dragon by Jewgenij Schwarz. In the 1960s, he became the Intendant of
the
VolksbühneVolksbühne often working with Heiner Müller.[citation needed]
In the 1970s, a parallel theatre scene sprung up, creating theatre
"outside of Berlin" in which artists played at provincial theatres.
For example,
Peter SodannPeter Sodann founded the Neues Theater in
Halle/SaaleHalle/Saale and
Frank Castorf at the theater Anklam.[citation needed]
Theatre and cabaret had high status in the GDR, which allowed it to be
very pro-active. This often brought it into confrontation with the
state.
Benno BessonBenno Besson once said, "In contrast to artists in the west,
they took us seriously, we had a bearing."[94][citation needed]
The
Friedrichstadt-PalastFriedrichstadt-Palast in
BerlinBerlin is the last major building erected
by the GDR, making it an exceptional architectural testimony to how
GermanyGermany overcame of its former division. Here, Berlin’s great revue
tradition lives on, today bringing viewers state-of-the-art shows.[95]

Volksbühne

Important theatres include the Berliner Ensemble,[96] the Deutsches
Theater,[97] the Maxim Gorki Theater,[98] and the Volksbühne.[99]
Cinema[edit]
The prolific cinema of East
GermanyGermany was headed by the DEFA,[100]
Deutsche Film AG, which was subdivided in different local groups, for
example Gruppe Berlin, Gruppe
BabelsbergBabelsberg or Gruppe Johannisthal, where
the local teams shot and produced films. The
East GermanEast German industry
became known worldwide for its productions, especially children's
movies (Das kalte Herz, film versions of the
Brothers GrimmBrothers Grimm fairy
tales and modern productions such as Das Schulgespenst).[citation
needed]
Frank Beyer's Jakob der Lügner (Jacob the Liar), about the Holocaust,
and
Fünf PatronenhülsenFünf Patronenhülsen (Five Cartridges), about resistance against
fascism, became internationally famous.[citation needed]
Films about daily life, such as Die Legende von Paul und Paula, by
Heiner Carow, and Solo Sunny, directed by
Konrad WolfKonrad Wolf and Wolfgang
Kohlhaase, were very popular.[citation needed]
The film industry was remarkable for its production of Ostern, or
Western-like movies. Native Americans in these films often took the
role of displaced people who fight for their rights, in contrast to
the American westerns of the time, where Native Americans were often
either not mentioned at all or are portrayed as the villains.
Yugoslavians were often cast as the Native Americans because of the
small number of Native Americans in Europe.
Gojko MitićGojko Mitić was well
known in these roles, often playing the righteous, kindhearted and
charming chief (Die Söhne der großen Bärin directed by Josef Mach).
He became an honorary
SiouxSioux chief when he visited the
United StatesUnited States in
the 1990s, and the television crew accompanying him showed the tribe
one of his movies. American actor and singer Dean Reed, an expatriate
who lived in East Germany, also starred in several films. These films
were part of the phenomenon of Europe producing alternative films
about the colonization of America.[citation needed]
Cinemas in the GDR also showed foreign films. Czechoslovak and Polish
productions were more common, but certain western movies were shown,
though the numbers of these were limited because it cost foreign
exchange to buy the licences. Further, movies representing or
glorifying capitalist ideology were not bought. Comedies enjoyed great
popularity, such as the Danish
Olsen GangOlsen Gang or movies with the French
comedian Louis de Funès.[citation needed]
Since the fall of the
BerlinBerlin Wall, several movies depicting life in
the GDR have been critically acclaimed.[citation needed] Some of the
most notable were
Good Bye Lenin!Good Bye Lenin! by Wolfgang Becker,[101] Das Leben
der Anderen (The Lives of Others) by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
(won the
Academy AwardAcademy Award for best Film in a Foreign Language) in
2006,[102] and
Alles auf Zucker! (Go for Zucker) by Dani Levi. Each
film is heavily infused with cultural nuances unique to life in the
GDR.[103]
Sport[edit]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help
improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2012)
(Learn how and when to remove this template message)

East
GermanyGermany was very successful in the sports of cycling,
weight-lifting, swimming, gymnastics, track and field, boxing, ice
skating, and winter sports. The success is attributed to the
leadership of Dr.
Manfred Hoeppner which started in the late
1960s.[citation needed]

Another supporting reason was doping in East Germany, especially with
anabolic steroids, the most detected doping substances in
IOC-accredited laboratories for many years.[104][105] The development
and implementation of a state-supported sports doping program helped
East Germany, with its small population, to become a world leader in
sport during the 1970s and 1980s, winning a large number of Olympic
and world gold medals and
records.[106][107][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116][117][118][119][excessive
citations]
Another factor for success was the furtherance system for young people
in GDR. Sport teachers at school were encouraged to look for certain
talents in children ages 6 to 10 years old. For older pupils it was
possible to attend grammar schools with a focus on sports (for example
sailing, football and swimming). This policy was also used for
talented pupils with regard to music or mathematics.[citation needed]

Karin Janz

Sports clubs were highly subsidized, especially sports in which it was
possible to get international fame. For example, the major leagues for
ice hockey and basketball just included 2 teams each. Football was the
most popular sport. Club football teams such as Dynamo Dresden, 1. FC
Magdeburg, FC Carl Zeiss Jena, 1. FC Lokomotive
LeipzigLeipzig and BFC Dynamo
had successes in European competition. Many
East GermanEast German players such
as
Matthias SammerMatthias Sammer and
Ulf KirstenUlf Kirsten became integral parts of the
reunified national football team. Other sports enjoyed great
popularity like figure skating, especially because of sportspeople
like Katarina Witt.[citation needed]

The East and the West also competed via sport; GDR athletes dominated
several Olympic sports. Of special interest was the only football
match between the Federal
RepublicRepublic of
GermanyGermany and the German
Democratic Republic, a first-round match during the 1974 FIFA World
Cup, which the East won 1–0; but West Germany, the host, went on to
win the World Cup.[120]

"25 years of the GDR" is a 1974 postage stamp commemorating the 25th
anniversary of East Germany’s establishment on 7 October 1949.

Television and radio[edit]
Television and radio in East
GermanyGermany were state-run industries; the
Rundfunk der DDRRundfunk der DDR was the official radio broadcasting organisation from
1952 until unification. The organization was based in the Funkhaus
Nalepastraße in East Berlin.
Deutscher FernsehfunkDeutscher Fernsehfunk (DFF), from 1972
to 1990 known as Fernsehen der DDR or DDR-FS, was the state television
broadcaster from 1952. Reception of Western broadcasts was
widespread.[121]

Industry[edit]
Telecommunications[edit]
Further information: Telecommunications in Germany
By the mid-1980s, East
GermanyGermany possessed a well-developed
communications system. There were approximately 3.6 million
telephones in usage (21.8 for every 100 inhabitants), and 16,476 Telex
stations. Both of these networks were run by the Deutsche Post der DDR
(
East GermanEast German Post Office). East
GermanyGermany was assigned telephone country
code +37; in 1991, several months after reunification, East German
telephone exchanges were incorporated into country code +49.
An unusual feature of the telephone network was that, in most cases,
direct distance dialing for long-distance calls was not possible.
Although area codes were assigned to all major towns and cities, they
were only used for switching international calls. Instead, each
location had its own list of dialing codes with shorter codes for
local calls and longer codes for long-distance calls. After
unification, the existing network was largely replaced, and area codes
and dialing became standardised.
In 1976 East
GermanyGermany inaugurated the operation of a ground-based radio
station at
FürstenwaldeFürstenwalde for the purpose of relaying and receiving
communications from Soviet satellites and to serve as a participant in
the international telecommunications organization established by the
Soviet government, Intersputnik.
Official and public holidays[edit]

Date
English Name
German Name
Remarks

1 January
New Year's Day
Neujahr

Good Friday
Karfreitag

Easter Sunday
Ostersonntag

Easter Monday
Ostermontag
Was not an official holiday after 1967.

1 May
International Workers' Day/May Day
Tag der Arbeit (name in FRG)
The official name was Internationaler Kampf- und Feiertag der
Werktätigen (approx. 'International Day of the Struggle and
Celebration of the Workers')

8 May
Victory in Europe Day
Tag der Befreiung
The translation means "Day of Liberation"

Father's Day/Ascension Day
Vatertag/Christi Himmelfahrt
Thursday after the 5th Sunday after Easter. Was not an official
holiday after 1967.

Day of Repentance and Prayer
Buß- und Bettag
Penultimate Wednesday before the fourth Sunday before 25 December.
Originally a
ProtestantProtestant feast day, it was demoted as an official
holiday in 1967.

25 December
First Day of Christmas
1. Weihnachtsfeiertag

26 December
Second Day of Christmas
2. Weihnachtsfeiertag

Legacy[edit]
Margot Honecker, former Minister for Education of East Germany, summed
up its legacy as:

In this state, each person had a place. All children could attend
school free of charge, they received vocational training or studied,
and were guaranteed a job after training. Work was more than just a
means to earn money. Men and women received equal pay for equal work
and performance. Equality for women was not just on paper. Care for
children and the elderly was the law. Medical care was free, cultural
and leisure activities affordable. Social security was a matter of
course. We knew no beggars or homelessness. There was a sense of
solidarity. People felt responsible not only for themselves, but
worked in various democratic bodies on the basis of common
interests.[122]

Conceptualizing the GDR as a dictatorship has become widely accepted,
while the meaning of the concept dictatorship varies. Massive evidence
has been collected that proves the repressive, undemocratic,
illiberal, nonpluralistic character of the GDR regime and its ruling
party.[123]

Ostalgie[edit]
Main article: Ostalgie
Many East Germans initially regarded the dissolution of the GDR
positively.[124] But this reaction soon turned sour.[125] West Germans
often acted as if they had "won" and East Germans had "lost" in
unification, leading many East Germans (Ossis) to resent West Germans
(Wessis).[126] In 2004, Ascher Barnstone wrote, "East Germans resent
the wealth possessed by West Germans; West Germans see the East
Germans as lazy opportunists who want something for nothing. East
Germans find 'Wessis' arrogant and pushy, West Germans think the
'Ossis' are lazy good-for-nothings."[127] On a more fundamental level,
unification and subsequent federal policies led to serious economic
hardships for many East Germans that had not existed before the Wende.
Unemployment and homelessness, which had been minimal during the
communist era, grew and quickly became widespread; this, as well as
the closures of countless factories and other workplaces in the east,
fostered a growing sense that East Germans were being ignored or
neglected by the federal government.
These and other effects of unification led many East Germans to begin
to think of themselves more strongly as "East" Germans rather than as
simply "Germans". In many former GDR citizens this produced a longing
for some aspects of the former East Germany, such as full employment
and other perceived benefits of the GDR state, termed "Ostalgie" (a
blend of Ost "east" and Nostalgie "nostalgia") and depicted in the
Wolfgang BeckerWolfgang Becker film Goodbye Lenin!.
See also[edit]

Border Museum at Schifflersgrund
AHF – Nationale Volksarmee : NVA
That was the GDR (in German) at the
Wayback MachineWayback Machine (archived 8 April
2010)
The German Democratic Republic, an English-language
East GermanEast German work
from 1986 providing an overview of its society.
GDR: An Historical Outline, an English-language
East GermanEast German history
book published in 1981.
Translations of propaganda materials from the GDR.
Geschichte des ostdeutschen Designs – history of east German
design (in German)
DDR Museum Berlin – Culture of GDR
Interactive Map of the
Berlin WallBerlin Wall Note: This domain name expired on
12/16/2017 and is pending renewal or deletion.
East Berlin, past and present at the
Wayback MachineWayback Machine (archived 28
September 2007)
Pictures of the GDR 1949–1973
RFE/RL
East GermanEast German Subject Files Open Society Archives, Budapest at
the
Wayback MachineWayback Machine (archived 2 December 2008)
Stamps Catalog of the German Democratic
RepublicRepublic at Archive.is
(archived 2 January 2013)
East GermanEast German anthem with English and German lyrics
Map of Europe at the time of the creation of East Germany
(omniatlas.com)

List of sovereign states · Europe

Preceded by
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
and the
Soviet Military Administration in Germany
(1945–1949)
German Democratic Republic
(concurrent with the
Federal
RepublicRepublic of Germany)
1949–1990
Succeeded by
Federal
RepublicRepublic of Germany

Revolutions of 1989
Fall of the
BerlinBerlin Wall
Romanian Revolution
Fall of communism in Albania
Singing Revolution
Collapse of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia
January 1991 events in Lithuania
January 1991 events in Latvia